17 Amazingly Useful Android Apps You Should Already Have Installed on Your Phone in 2013

In the days when the Android Market was new, a list of “best” or “need to have” apps would be hard to come by. Android was so far behind Apple’s app store that it seemed an insurmountable road to climb in order to compete.

Well, Android sprinted from the starting line and today things are looking much different. There is a vast ocean of options for Android apps on Google Play, allowing you to make your phone or tablet do everything you need it to do and more.

Here’s our list of some of the most amazingly useful Android apps that you’ll want on your device. These are the apps that you’ll find you need more often than you don’t. These apps may not have all the glitz and glamour of some other apps on Google Play, but when it’s crunch time; when you need to send a lighting fast text message, get some quick info, jot down some notes or just get some plain silence, then these are your most useful Android apps!

What’s the best thing about our list? Most of them are free! Take a look and tell us what you think at the bottom by leaving a comment.

SnapText is a real convenient app to have if you do a lot of text follow-ups to unanswered calls. We’re in the habit of needing instant gratification. When we call someone and they don’t answer, the first thing we do is text them to see what’s up. With Snaptext you are able to create a list of your very own follow up texts that you usually send all the time anyway. “Where are you?”, “Are you alright?” and “I’m making dinner…don’t eat!” are now easily sent at the snap of a finger! Send the entire text message without even typing it out.

Reddit has quickly established itself as a one of the web’s top social news, rumor, hack, tip, and entertainment sites. It has a type of cult following and readership that is sought after by most sites of the same type. BaconReader brings everything that is Reddit right to your Android phone or tablet. You get instant access to news and the ability to post your own Reddit links right in the palm of your hand.

Nothing is more embarrassing and unprofessional than a cell phone ringing in the middle of a movie or a business meeting. However, most of us are already in the habit of turning our ringers off for those kinds of important events. Where we epically fail is to turn the ringer back on, leaving us in the lurch with missed calls and texts. Shush Ringtone Restorer is used to automatically turn those ringers and alerts back on after that movie or business meeting.

There are a lot of cloud and task list apps out there, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. Evernote is great because it combines all the “good stuff” from those app and jams it into one little, powerful package. Sort notes, images and voice recordings for future reference. You can add tags to each file for easy sorting and project organization which makes it easier for the whole team to stay on point with the project at hand.

Quite possibly the most useful productivity app in the Android arsenal. Any.do is a task list and reminder system that does it all. An easy to use interface that has all the bells and whistles. It will sync with Google tasks, set reminders, snooze reminders and works great with speech recognition software to set tasks on the go!

Small numbers. Big fingers. Lots of aggravation. It’s hard to send text on some phones these days, especially with the sensitivity of today’s touch screen technology. With Swype keyboard you just run your finger over the letters of the word you’re typing and it pops up on the screen. If it’s not the word you meant to type then Swype’s dictionary technology will suggest words that are similar to what you were trying to type. Ultra-accurate and an easier solution to tapping and poking your Android phone screen.

Managing your bank accounts, credit cards and bills has never been easier-online or off. With Mint you can connect any account you like and watch where and how you’re spending your money at any time. Setting budget and savings goals, Mint will help you stay within your threshold with easy to understand colored pie-charts. The app tells you when you have bills due and even if you’ve been charged a fee for late or non-payment. Absolutely perfect for personal or small businesses.

Say what you will about Google, but Chrome is the premiere web browser out there. If you’re still using the stock browser on your Android device then you’re really missing out. (And kind of lame, actually.) When you’re logged into your Google account then your Chrome cookies, browsing history and search history are on every device you use Chrome on. Highly-responsive, user friendly and a vast library of extensions and add-ons makes Chrome all that you’ll ever need in a browser.

If Evernote is a great “team collaboration” cloud and organization app, then Dropbox is the “family friendly” version of it. Saving documents, images and files to your Dropbox account allows to easily share vacation photos with family around the world simply by sending them the link to your folder, and letting them browse and print which ones they really want.

It didn’t take long for Instagram to take over the photo-social sharing “King of the Hill” title. With a huge pool of custom filters, you can set your photos and videos to your own liking and character. Gather a following and keep up to date with your favorite “Instagrammers” with the social part of the app. This isn’t just a social app, though. Instagram packs a punch with top of the line mobile camera technology making it perfect for novice and pro alike.

Photoshop has become extremely popular amongst webdesigners and Adobe users for years. With Photoshop Touch for Android you get all the features on your phone or tablet. All the useful layering and selection tools that you’re accustomed to using on your PC or Mac can now be used on the go. The best part? Start a project on your tablet and finish it on your phone if you need to edit something at the last minute.

Toll free international calling and video sessions are great for family and friends that are in different countries. If you travel a lot for business or just want to see your kid’s faces when you’re away then using Skype is the way to go. Great for small business video calls with clients or just to show your spouse the car that you’re thinking about purchasing in real-time.

It comes with a price tag, yes. This isn’t your typical app, though, that might go for two or three dollars. Mobile Antivirus Security does everything that you’ll need to keep your Android device safe and running optimally by doing such things as scanning apps, media and files-all in real time. It will ensure that you’re browsing the web safely and securely as well as killing apps that are running in the background that could be slowing your device down and eating up battery life.

Lose It logs your age, bodyvweight and how many pounds you’d like to lose per week. The app then tracks your exercises by time, distance and intensity to show how many calories you’re burning during every workout. Cool, right? That’s not the best part. You can log whatever you eat by portion to help stay within what the app allows you for your daily caloric intake. You can manually input, choose from popular restaurant menu items or scan the barcode for the most accurate calorie tracking app in the Android Market.

Real-time weather sensors and alerts from all across the globe can come in handy for the often traveled Android user. Besides that, you can bet that Weather Bug’s weather alert system is one of the best around to ensure that you’ll be ready for dangerous, inclement weather with help from your Android device.

A convenient way to get all the news that pertains to you and that you care about. Flipboards innovative system allows you to browse all of the important headlines of the time by swiping your finger and opening new boards. See an article you like? No problem. Just click on it and the Flipboard system takes you straight to the original source and the article. Trendy and tight!

While Instagram takes a great camera app and goes social with it, Camera Zoom FX developers pride themselves on having the best camera app on Android. The app was actually names just that by Lifehacker. Give it a try and you’ll quickly fall in love with the features like stable shot, burst, voice activation and time lapse.